Sketch Models

Ideas must be put to the test,
that's why we make things.
Otherwise they would be 
 no more than ideas. 

Andy Goldsworthy, 1956- 
 English sculptor and photographer

Creating sketch models is a way to test out design concepts. Brunswick puts their ideas to the test.

CSH SKETCH MODELS

Amy Leidtke, RISD Professor, Industrial Designer, Educator Spends the Day at CSH

A developed country is not a place where the poor have cars, it's where the rich use public transportation.

  ~Enrique Penalosa, Former Mayor of Bogota

On December 11th, Amy Leidtke, RISD Professor/Industrial Designer/Educator, spent an action-packed and  fruitful day with Sacred Heart students.  Third and sixth graders participated in a hands-on workshop in the Makerspace designing and modeling chairs to scale using biodegradable packing peanuts. Middle and Upper Schoolers had the opportunity to talk to Amy about careers in Industrial Design.  To top off the day, Amy shared her expertise with CSH'S 8th grade Bus Stop Design Team in the art room.

After the students present their research findings, it is time to begin sketching preliminary design concepts.  Amy demonstrates model sketching, a quick and malleable way to represent design ideas in 3D.

Amy's scale model of a bus, some passengers, a tree, sidewalk and curb will help the girls visualize, ideate and role play with their own models.

Quickly assimilating Amy's tips on scoring cardboard and drawing graphic reminders of design concepts on the model, an 8th grader pens in a solar panel on her dome-shaped bus stop.

The Research Process

Research is formalized curiosity.  It is poking and prying with a purpose.  ~Zora Neale Hurson  

The first step in the bus stop design project is research.  Students work in research teams using a variety of visual research methods.  The teams are engaged in-depth, user-centered data collection techniques, such measurements, personas, interviews, photo studies.   

The Universal Methods of Design: 100 Ways to Research Complex Problems, Develop Innovative Ideas, and Design Effective Solutions by Bella Martin and Bruce Hannington is our touchstone text for research.  

The Brunswick Measurement Team

Dimensions - measurement team

30 feet base (bigger than usual) to allow many seats available

8.5 feet height to allow people to stand straight up

5 feet deep for standing space

most optimal size for a bus stop

most cover and optimal space

Angled roof to keep off rain

18 inch seats

CSH PERSONA TEAM

"Personas consolidate archetypal descriptions of user behavior patterns into representative profiles, to humanize design focus, test scenarios, and aid design communication." (Martin 132)

CSH students investigate the design requirements of four personas in the poster and infographic below: sporty people, nerdy/smart people, younger kids, disabled people.

CSH BODYSTORMING TEAM

"Bodystorming situates brainstorming in physical experience, combining role-playing and simulation to inspire new ideas and empathic, spontaneous prototyping." (Martin 20)

BRUNSWICK PHOTO STUDIES TEAM

'Photo Studies invite the participant to photo-documetn aspects of his or her life interactions, providing the designer with visual, self-reported insights into user behaviors and priorities." (Martin 134)

Brunswick's Bus Loop

Another perspective of Brunswick's Bus Loop

And another.

CSH CRITICAL INCIDENT TECHNIQUE TEAM

"Understanding how users experience your product at critical moments can help you optimize your designs for future users."  (Martin 50)

Trying on the hats of various bus riders caught in a variety of challenging scenarios, students create cartoons to illustrate positive critical incidents positing both the challenges and design solutions:

BRUNSWICK INTERVIEW TEAM

"Interviews are a fundamental research method for direct contact with participants, to collect firsthand personal accounts of experience, opinions, attitudes, and perceptions."  (Martin 102)

RESULTS OF INTERVIEW CONDUCTED AT BRUNSWICK

Warmer bus stops

Better shelter

Protection from the rain

Natural appearance- luscious plant growth

Map of the area

Vending machines

Nicer, more comfortable chairs- average waiting time 5 minutes

Roof

World cup themed

Bathroom in bus area

Food and drinks

Good Location

Lighting

App to see if bus is on time

Free wifi

1. Free Wifi
2. Heated Reclining Massage Couches
3. Bathrooms
4. Gaming System W/ TVs
5. Hot Tub W/ Towel Rack
6. Outlets
7. Bigger
8. Snack Bar
9. Electronic Bus Schedule
10. Computers
11. Drink Dispenser
12. Trampoline Section
13. Zip-Line
14. Pablo The Polar Bear Statue
15. Small Paintball Field On The Roof
16. Drinking Fountain
17. Decorations
18. Chinchillas
19. Heater/AC
20. INDOORS
21. ATM

CSH INTERVIEW TEAM

A few sample interview questions and answers.

Sacred Heart Girls Brainstorm Research Methods

Sacred Heart Art Teacher, Annette Grueterich and her 8th graders brainstormed research methods, such as image boards, critical incident technique, interviewing, body-storming, personas, found in this touchstone book:

The School Bus Stop Project Kick Off Celebration at Brunswick

The School Bus Stop Project

Eighth Graders from Convent of the Sacred Heart and Brunswick School join together to launch their design project:  The School Bus Stop.

Students watch a clip from the documentary "Urbanized' showing the mayor of Bogota, Enrique Penalosa, explaining the far flung, transformational effects of innovating the public bus service and bus stops on urban living.

Brunswick Art Teacher, Lorna LaRiviere describes the Industrial Design course she took at Rhode Island School of Design, on which the CSH/Brunswick collaboration is based.

A model of Mrs. LaRiviere's final bus stop design.

Brunswick and CSH students pose for a kickoff photograph.